March 26, 2024

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The power of the NFL is on full display once again, as a Wednesday placement on the calendar still isn’t enough to thwart Christmas Day games this year. … A crisis management expert grades Shohei Ohtani’s performance at his closely scrutinized press conference. … Large crowds came out in the early rounds of the men’s and women’s versions of March Madness. … Plus: More on MLS, Flutter, the Big 12, and a former Chinese soccer official.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]] and David Rumsey [[link removed]]

Midweek Special: NFL Planning Two Christmas Games on Wednesday [[link removed]]

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL is coming back with force for Christmas 2024, even after the league previously said it likely couldn’t, showing both the power of its fans and the depth of stakeholders’ desire to establish a firm grasp on the holiday.

As owners meetings concluded Tuesday in Orlando, the NFL said it will play a doubleheader on Christmas, despite the fact that it will fall on Wednesday this year. Here’s how it will work: On Saturday, Dec. 21, the league will play what is expected to be a tripleheader. Four of those teams will then play again (likely against new opponents) on Dec. 25, with the same amount of rest that Thursday Night Football participants typically get after a Sunday game. The NFL previously suggested it would probably not pursue Christmas games this year due to the midweek placement on the calendar, but it left open [[link removed]] the possibility “if the broadcast partners are interested, if it fits in our overall strategy.”

Indeed, the viewership numbers for its three Christmas 2023 games, played on a Monday, made a massive statement in favor of a return engagement this year. CBS drew an average of 29.2 million for an early-afternoon game between the Raiders and Chiefs. Fox averaged 29 million for its late-afternoon broadcast of Giants-Eagles. And ESPN garnered an average of 27.1 million for a prime-time Ravens-49ers game.

Those figures—all representing historic highs of some meaningful measure—completely trounced the NBA’s, which averaged 2.86 million for its set of five games, recorded viewership declines [[link removed]] in each of those games this past Christmas, and saw its historic hold on the holiday meaningfully disrupted [[link removed]]. “We’ve seen some unprecedented growth” in viewership on the holiday, Hans Schroeder, the NFL’s executive vice president for media distribution, told reporters in Florida. “Football brings people together, and that’s even truer on those big holidays.”

Expanding Calendar … and Streaming

More broadly, the return to Christmas this year is also emblematic of the NFL’s ongoing efforts to expand its calendar, an initiative that will also see the league’s debut game [[link removed]] in Brazil, in which the Eagles will play either the Browns or Packers on Friday, Sept. 6, and will be streamed by Peacock. That marks yet another game moved to the “exclusively streamed” category. Last year, Peacock had a regular-season and playoff game. But, in January 2025, that streaming-only wild-card matchup will move to Amazon Prime Video, its new annual home, the league confirmed Tuesday.

Grading Ohtani’s Explanation: ‘I Would Give It an A’ [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

There are still plenty of questions surrounding Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani after he finally spoke [[link removed]] about the ongoing betting scandal involving his former translator, Ippei Mizuhara, on Monday afternoon. But the first step of addressing the elephant in the room is out of the way, and Mike Paul, a public relations and reputation management consultant, joined the Front Office Sports Today podcast [[link removed]] to break down his takeaways from Ohtani’s press conference.

Here are some of Paul’s biggest thoughts on Ohtani’s strategy:

Rapid reaction: “If I had to grade this press conference, this controlled press conference, without knowing the details of it being an alleged crime, I would have given it a lower grade. But because we know that it is an alleged crime, a very serious crime, I would give it an A.” The reach of Ohtani: “He’s a global figure. The story’s gonna be even bigger [abroad] than it is here, I predict. And it’s important for the legal team, as well as the public relations and branding teams, to keep on top of every twist and turn.” What’s the truth? “Ohtani said that when [Mizuhara] was asked the question to explain what had happened, he didn’t translate that for him. I find that fascinating. It’s the reason why we had two different answers. One that was from the translator and now one that’s from him. The truth versus the lies. And someone manipulating and taking advantage of your inability to speak English to communicate one message to some and another to you.” How did this happen? “If [Mizuhara] was properly vetted, someone would have learned that he likes to gamble. And that obviously did not come up, at least from what we know today, in any vetting of any kind.”

🎧 Listen to the full episode here [[link removed]] and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

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March 2024 Tech Playmakers

Front Office Sports, in collaboration with WSC Sports, is thrilled to announce Mike DeBrincat, Jonathan Vu, Matt Lathrop, and Peyton Zeigler from the National Football League as our March 2024 Tech Playmakers [[link removed]] for their outstanding work on the NFL Channel.

The NFL Channel [[link removed]], a product of the NFL, has emerged as a trailblazer in the ever-evolving world of sports broadcasting within the FAST industry. Since its inception in 2019, the channel has redefined the way football fanatics engage with the No. 1 sport in America. In the last year alone, it has experienced a 200% increase in viewership.

Discover more about our March 2024 Tech Playmakers Award winner [[link removed]], and don’t miss the chance to nominate your team today.

April nominations are now open [[link removed]].

ONE BIG FIG March Madness, by the Numbers

The Des Moines Register

683,529

The approximate number of people that attended men’s and women’s NCAA tournament games during the first and second rounds. Here’s the breakdown:

A record 292,456 fans showed up for women’s games at campuses of top-seeded teams. That’s about 60,000 more than last year’s record number. Men’s games drew 391,073 attendees across eight neutral sites, with seven arenas drawing crowds of 95% capacity or higher. STATUS REPORT Three Up, One Down

Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports

MLS ⬆ The league’s replacement referee saga is finally over. Match officials represented by the Professional Soccer Referees Association will return to MLS games Saturday, after a new seven-year collective bargaining agreement was reached with the Professional Referee Organization.

Flutter ⬆ The FanDuel parent company continued its momentum since beginning [[link removed]] a U.S. stock listing in January, reporting a 25% rise in fiscal 2023 revenue to $11.8 billion and a full year of adjusted profitability in its American operations. Flutter saw its net loss worldwide more than triple last year to $1.2 billion, but investors were more interested in a robust projection that U.S. core profit could expand from last year’s $167 million to between $635 million and $785 million in ’24.

Big 12 ⬆ The conference is bringing together 137 of its NFL draft prospects for a four-day showcase at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, beginning Wednesday. The first-ever Big 12 Pro Day will include participation from 12 of the conference’s 14 schools (Texas and Oklahoma opted to hold their own pro days).

Chen Xuyuan ⬇ The former head of the Chinese Football Association has been sentenced [[link removed]] to life in prison for accepting more than $10 million in bribes as part of one of soccer’s biggest corruption scandals in recent years.

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Conversation Starters The NFL Global Markets Program is expanding by four teams and five new markets. See which teams [[link removed]] are claiming more countries. The Cavaliers revealed [[link removed]] their new downtown performance center, which is part of a larger $3.5 billion plan. Located on the Cuyahoga River, the facility is set to become one of the world’s largest training facilities (pending approval), with groundbreaking expected by 2025. Nike’s latest ad for the Air Max Dn features [[link removed]] Drake, Billie Eilish, Erling Haaland, and Sha’Carri Richardson. Editors’ Picks 49ers Player Politely Declines to Return $75,000 Team Accidentally Paid [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]An accounting error has impacted the 49ers in two future NFL drafts. The Women’s Trading Card Market Is Untapped. Can Caitlin Clark Change That? [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]Traditionally, women’s sports cards have been a marginal part of collectibles. NBA Investigating Raptors Center Jontay Porter Over Suspicious Prop Bets [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]The league is looking into ‘multiple instances of betting irregularities’ in recent months, ESPN reported. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Sports Careers [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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